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About Carnegie Corporation
Richard
W. Riley
Trustee, Carnegie Corporation of New York
Richard
W. Riley is the former Governor of South Carolina and the former
U.S. Secretary of Education, serving the eight years of the Clinton
administration. After winning national recognition for his successful
education improvements in South Carolina during the 1980s, Riley
was chosen by President Clinton in December 1992 to serve in his
Cabinet as the nation’s chief education officer. During the
president’s first term, Secretary Riley helped launch historic
initiatives to raise academic standards; improve instruction for
the poor and disadvantaged; expand grant and loan programs to help
more Americans go to college; prepare young people for the world
of work; and improve teaching. He also created the Partnership for
Family Involvement in Education, which today includes more than
8,000 groups.
During
the president’s second term, Secretary Riley helped win a
historic Federal Communications Commission ruling to give schools
and libraries deep discounts for Internet access and telecommunications
services (known as the E-rate) and promoted major improvements in
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. He gained increased
federal support to help all children master the basics of reading
and math; make schools safer; reduce class size in grades 1-3 by
hiring 100,000 more quality teachers; modernize and build new schools
to meet record-breaking student enrollments; help students learn
to use computers; expand after-school programs; foster college preparation
and access for underprivileged students; make postsecondary education
more affordable; and promote lifelong learning. Riley also focused
national attention on the need for people of all ages in America
to learn more than one language and for increased international
education exchanges between the United States and other nations
in order to take advantage of the opportunities presented in the
global society of the 21st century.
Since
leaving his national post in January 2001, Riley has rejoined the
law firm of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, which has more
than 300 attorneys in offices throughout South Carolina and North
Carolina, as well as in Atlanta. He has also been appointed Distinguished
Professor at his alma mater, Furman University, and serves as Advisory
Board Chair of the Richard W. Riley Institute of Government, Politics
and Public Leadership there. Additionally, Riley has been named
Distinguished Professor at the University of South Carolina and
Distinguished Senior Fellow at NAFSA: Association of International
Educators. He also gives talks, provides leadership and serves in
an advisory and collaborative capacity with many other institutions
and organizations to promote education improvement in the United
States and abroad.
A native
of South Carolina, he graduated cum laude from Furman University
in 1954 and then served as an officer aboard a U. S. Navy minesweeper.
In 1959, Riley received a law degree from the University of South
Carolina. He served as a South Carolina state representative and
state senator from 1963-1977, was elected governor in 1978 and reelected
in 1982.
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